Tales of lonely trails eBook

We all roared with laughter except Romer. His
interest had been so all-absorbing, his excitement
so great, and his faith in the story-teller so reverential
that at first he could not grasp the trick at the
end of the story. His face was radiant, his eyes
were dark and dilated. When the truth dawned
upon him, amaze and disappointment changed his mobile
face, and then came mirth. He shouted as if to
the tree-tops on high. Long after he was in bed
I heard him laughing to himself.

I was awakened a little after daylight by the lad
trying to get into his boots. His boots were
rather tight, and somehow, even in a dry forest, he
always contrived to get them wet, so that in the morning
it was a herculean task for him to pull them on.
This occasion appeared more strenuous than usual.
“Son, what’s the idea?” I inquired.
“It’s just daylight—­not time
to get up.” He desisted from his labors
long enough to pant: “Uncle Rome’s—­gone
after turkeys. Edd’s going to—­call
them with—­a caller—­made out of
a turkey’s wing-bone.” And I said:
“But they’ve gone now.” Whereupon
he subsided: “Darned old boots! I
heard Edd and Uncle Rome. I’d been ready
if I could have got into my darned old boots....
See here, Dad, I’m gonna wear moccasins.”

III

As we were sitting round the camp-fire, eating breakfast,
R.C. and Edd returned; and R.C. carried a turkey gobbler
the very size and color of the one I had shot the
night before. R.C.’s face wore the keen,
pleased expression characteristic of it when he had
just had some unusual and satisfying experience.

[Illustration: ZanegreyonDonCarlos]

[Illustration: Wildturkey]

“Sure was great,” he said, warming his
hands at the fire. “We went up on the hill
where you killed your gobbler last night. Got
there just in the gray light of dawn. We were
careful not to make any noise. Edd said if there
were any more turkeys they would come down at daylight.
So we waited until it was light enough to see.
Then Edd got out his turkey bone and began to call.
Turkeys answered from the trees all around. By
George, it was immense! Edd had picked out a thicket
of little pines for us to hide in, and in front of
us was a glade with a big fallen tree lying across
it. Edd waited a few moments. The woods
was all gray and quiet. I don’t know when
I’ve felt so good. Then he called again.
At once turkeys answered from all around in the trees.
Next I heard a swish of wings, then a thump. Then
more swishes. The turkeys were flying down from
their roosts. It seemed to me in my excitement
that there were a hundred of them. We could hear
them pattering over the dry ground. Edd whispered:
’They’re down. Now we got to do some
real callin’.’ I felt how tense, how
cautious he was. When he called again there was
some little difference, I don’t know what, unless